Stanton Street Shul
Louis A. Sheinart (Photo-D. Wye)
Designed by Louis A. Sheinart in a Classically inspired style, and built in 1913, the Stanton Street Shul typifies a significant Lower East Side architectural type — the “tenement synagogue.” These intimately scaled religious buildings, side-by-side with residential tenements, were once ubiquitous on the streets of the Lower East Side, at a time when its Jewish immigrants comprised the largest Jewish population in the world.
While over the years many buildings housing Jewish congregations have disappeared, and some have been repurposed for residential and commercial uses, the Stanton Street Shul building remains much the same as it was in 1913, and services at this still-active synagogue continue. However, with real estate development on the Lower East Side still barreling ahead without concern for history, culture or architecture, the Stanton Street Shul is clearly in need of NYC landmark protection, to help ensure it can be with us for generations to come.